Tuesday, July 31, 2007

------------------------------------ Aloha! ----------------------------------------I have collected Hawaiian vintage bark cloth dressses or muumuus forever.In my single days(daze),I would snap them up at the thrift store ,immediately hack them off into a mini ,pair with cowboy boots,and thus set out to get my boogie toe on!Our bloggy land guest star today would probably find my flippant actions highly irreverant,NOOOOO,not for shaking my boogie toe!For slicing and dicing this classic island dress!Crooked Halo is shown above in an early fave of mine I still wear(only no longer as a mini,thank goodness for skinny jeans!).I'm sure most of you know the delightfully funny and artistic site that is Miz Smoochie Lips !Ah... but please take a look at the gorgeous creature herself as we explore this honest to goodness real-life island girls vintage passion!TIA :Here we go.... (checking the mirror to make sure there's not broccoli stuck in my two front teeth).JDP 1)You have an amazing and beautiful collection of muumuus. is there a particular reason for your love of the classic island dress?

TIA:I am an island girl, born in the South Pacific Island of Ponape (Pohnpei) - sounded out like Pawn-uh-pay - and was fortunate to be adopted by Americans when I was a toddler. As the saying goes, you can leave the islands, but the islands never leave you.This is so true... I have a fondness for all things tropical... but the clothing - ohhhh so comfortable and glamorous and colorful - all in one!JDP 2)Where did you find all of them ?

TIA :I've been fortunate to find most of them on Ebay, some in local thrift stores, and I have a couple skirts made in my home island which are custom day wear for the ladies. The skirts are sometimes worn up around the breasts (sometimes covering them, sometimes not!!) like you'd wear a sundress... If you need to be more modest, you might wear a tshirt underneath.

It's quite comfortable, actually, and I wear this out of the shower, or even on hot hot day.... it's amazing how un-constricting a skirt is on a hot day.(worn as a skirt)(detail of the beautiful cutwork)(worn as a dress)editors note:I gotta get me one of these!JDP 3)Have you worn all of them and where do you wear them?

TIA :Yes! I wear them!!! Quite often. However, I've found that vintage sizes do not run true to today's sizes... so a few mistakes led me to buying ones that are too tiny for my fluffy waistline. I keep them just the same because you never know who will need to borrow one!

I've worn them out to dinner, I've worn them to a formal ball, I wear them when entertaining during the holidays and even just to lounge around the house. I've even worn them shopping out and about...

(adjustment ties for "fluffy waistlines")JDP 4)How do you accessorize them?

TIA :They really don't need much accessories thanks to their color and fabulous designs. Normally I throw my hair up and pop a flower (the larger the better!) in my updo, or I tuck one behind my ear and wear my hair down. Sometimes I twist it into a chignon and slip a flower to one side of it also. So basically, all it needs is a flower in your hair.

Depending on how dressy or how casual the muumuu is, I'll either wear strappy sandals or just flipflops! Never with nylons. Muumuus and nylons are just taboo....

JDP 5)Which one is your favorite?

TIA:I have 2 favorites. The first one I paid a pretty mint for on Ebay, but I fell in love with the design of the piece with the mermaid skirt and the beautiful sleeve and bust detail...

TIA :The second one is so glam with the neckline and the color coordination - and the huge bright flowers... ...this is the one I also wore to my husband's ball last year.JDP 6)Thank you sooo much for sharing with us it has been such fun getting to know you and your vintage passion better,is there any other special thoughts ,stories or collecting tips,you would like to share?

TIA :I've run across people who don't collect things because they'll just collect dust. I say, collect USEFUL things or something dear to your heart... maybe something that invokes a memory, or something that speaks to you. Instead of running to Target and purchasing a sugar dish for 14 dollars, check out your thrift, antique or garage sales until you find one that brings a bit of nostalgia into your kitchen! I've noticed that most of the things I hoard...er, collect... have become conversation starters, conjured up great memories for my friends, and even inspired some of them to take on the thrill of the hunt on the road to collecting!JDP :Smoochie Dahlink,I couldn't agree more with you!So do you all think being the hoarder...er,collector(thanx for the distinction Tia!)that Smoochie and I might possibly have one of the same garments? You bet your sweet Plumeria blossom we do!Naturally I have altered it with a bit of re-styling (sounds much less irreverant than hacking the hem off,huh?),this time the excess was used as a baby dress(made by my amazing mother) for my babes, a kind of mommy and me dress.I know "wheres the pic of the baby dress?",its... um...well ,okay, its HOARDED back...um...somewhere.

.....................................................................................................and now for some PAGODA-FIED ALOHA...........................

For our family trip to Hawaii last November,my goal was for all of us girls to wear vintage Aloha-wear.My favorite look for walking around was,the Hawaiian Cowgirl.Natuarally I have incuded this months"floor collection".I recently acquired this red dress from Buffalo Exchange in trade for some clothes I was tired of!For me this is your basic,run to the thrift or grocery store,"doing errands" kind of look. It is a version of the Hawaiian Cowgirl. I get a formula I like,and I tend to stick with it!Tia is right,the bold prints of these garments do not need much in the way of accessories,but I simply could not resist adding the stone tiki bracelet(click image to enlarge),and the straw vintage bag!Leggings and skinny jeans have crtainly allowed me to bring back my Hawaiian mini dresses. On those unusual childless outings I bring out my tropical Mexican bags just for extra punch!A wee peek at that collection....and speaking of "wee",some aloha shirts for the wee-ones!This amazing vintage boys shirt has little tiki masks on the sleeves! This one has 2 island beauties on it. You will find all 3 of these on sale in my Etsy Shop!Thank you again for sharing with us Tia,if you would like to see more of her collection check this link out!

Aloha dear vintage lovers! I will catch up with you when I get back from NYC and Boston!

Lovely interview and as always an informative post full of eye candy. In all honesty, you just made me want to go to Hawaii. I have a lovely 1960s Hawaiian Trapeze dress sitting in my closet waiting to be made into something because it is too big on me. I feel a bit inspired after coming here to get to work! Have fun in nyc!

Oh wow, what a great post this was! Anything that is vintage polynesian and/or tiki-related is near and dear to my heart :)) Had such fun looking at all these great outfits, thank you so much Miz Pagoda and Miz Smoochie!

P.S. Lately I have been addicted to listening to vintage Hawaiian music, just love it!

I actually have a GORGEOUS Hilo Hattie empire-waisted muumuu with hibiscus flowers on it that I never wear. I think I'm going to list it in my Etsy store very soon. It needs to be with someone who will love it!

xo,

Karen Beth - zazazu.wordpress.com

I'm posting under my new Etsy store's blog for a bit more exposure to it. :)

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About Me

Hello there! I'm Lisa-Gabrielle and even though I no longer live in a 1955 Cliff May house.....my new pagoda is from the same midcentury modern era and looks like what the Cliff May home would look like if it ate its Wheaties. I stay at home here in Dallas ,Texas ...with my 2 clever girls and adore my handsome hubs, and I do believe there is an art to living and living is art!